


Gamer Meets Afterlife

by plot_bunny_dump (new_4_you)



Series: Old Ideas [1]
Category: Bleach
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-02
Updated: 2016-09-03
Packaged: 2018-08-12 12:44:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7935025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/new_4_you/pseuds/plot_bunny_dump
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Ichi's first day as a Shinigami.</p>
          </blockquote>





	1. Monsters

“ICHIIIGOOO!!”   
Huffing in annoyance, Ichigo threw one of his hands behind him, effectively blocking his crazy father. “Oi, Goat-chin, what did I tell you about disrupting me in the middle of a game?”  
Ichigo’s father gulped dramatically as his still sitting son pressed the pause button. Swiveling around in his favorite swivel chair, Ichigo cast a flat look at his father that he knew was scarier than any wild blustering could ever be.   
“Three hours… I only play three hours a day.”  
“But Ichigo! It’s that day!”   
Ichigo opened his mouth to give a retort but found nothing to say. Now that he thought about it, it was that day.  
It was custom now. Since his mother, Masaki, had died he’d become a game addict. At first it had simply been to distract himself from the real world… but it was different now. The games, the abilities, everything about the games were simply likeable. And so Ichigo slowly got over his depression and accepted his mother's death.   
Now he was ‘Wraith.’ An expert gamer in most of the popular and some of the less popular games.  
That didn’t mean that he gave up his real life. In the beginning he’d play till he’d be forced to eat. However, after looking at the date and realizing he hadn’t spoken to his sisters in three weeks, he’d been able to slowly heal from the trauma of finding his mom's dead corpse sprawled on top of him at the tender age of nine.   
He’d never forget, wouldn’t want to, but it had been six years since then. He’d moved on.  
And as he healed more and more, he’d gotten back into the groove of things. First he increased his grades and apologized to his family and then friends. He was distant, yes. But he still had his family and friends.   
Which led to the picnic. To celebrate the anniversary of him getting over his mom everyone would meet at the park and simply have fun. Heck, for the last two parties a fair portion of his class had shown up as well. The thought made him smile.  
“Thanks for reminding me. Oh, and um, sorry for punching you.” ichigo regretted saying anything at all when Isshin suddenly pulled out a picture of Masaki from thin air and started screaming his lungs off. All he could catch as he left the room were words like Ichigo, love, and babies. God, if it wasn’t such a hassle he’d go and punch him for talking like that. Stupid goat-chin.  
Yawning slightly, he got ready and grabbed the cake before leaving. It was only 1:30., he still had plenty of time to set up the party. Or maybe just put up a table and be done. Nah, the labyrinth can wait till later...probably.

 

“Hey Ichigo! Good to see you!”   
Pausing his game with a stifled sigh, Ichigo looked up. It seemed that Keigo and Mizuiro had arrived early. Thank god he’d chosen one of the less difficult games to play while waiting for everyone to show up. “Hey Keigo, Mizuiro.”   
Once the two were done setting up their dishes both approached him with crazy smiles. “Today's the day. We’re going to beat you!” Keigo shouted while Mizuiro nodded off to the side. Perfect, seems he wouldn’t have to stop playing now after all. “Bring it on.”  
And that was how The next couple people found them. Faces toward the screen and yelling insults to each other in the heat of the moment. Mizuiro had actually managed to win once before Tatsuki forced them to put their devices away.   
By now it was 4:00 and time to start the party. With their being over 50 people there nobody was left out and everyone apparently had a blast. They’d even started food fight near the end that resulted in Uryu being the food king with only a splotch of pudding on his knee. It was stupid and childish and fun. And as always, nobody really wanted to leave when the party ended.   
So here he was, at 10:30, walking home from a party that was supposed to end at seven. Oh, whatever, he’d expected that this would happen so whatever.  
“Screeee!”  
Ichigo was instantly on high alert. What was… suddenly he saw what made that sound. Down the street, a giant, hulking, frog with a white mask was slightly illuminated by the street lights. It was… chasing a chained boy.  
Since before his mother had died he’d been able to see what could only be called ghosts. They were everywhere. School, roads, restaurants, parks, heck he even had one named Toga in his bedroom. he’d only seen a monster one other time. Right before passing out on that fateful night of his mother’s death. Those creatures had taken his mother from him, and now they were after chained ones to.  
Not really thinking things through, Ichigo immediately rushed forward. This thing was going to hurt that chained kid.  
Looking back, he’d be thankful that his mad charge toward death was interrupted when it was. However, that was not how he felt at the moment. Out of the blue a girl in black appeared and cleaved the monster in half vertically. The thing disappeared without a trace.  
“”One down, two more to go.”  
What? That girl. She killed those things?  
At that moment Ichigo felt an irrational rage. If there were people killing these things then why had she died? Maybe it was more despondent anger then rage. “Hey, you! What was that thing!” No matter how strong the feeling, it was safer to never mention it.   
Without even a look in his direction the girl started walking off. Ichigo felt a flash of anger before he forced it back. Oh whatever, that girl had mentioned something about there being more of those things.   
He needed to play some games. Those would help him think through this shit. 

 

The next day was average...maybe to average. He woke up, thought about the girl, ate breakfast, and then played Dying Light until 8 O'clock.   
“Ichigooo!” Grunting in faint surprise, Ichigo barely dodged his father’s feet. “What the heck! It’s eight!”  
Isshin, Ichigo’s crazy father, grinned victoriously. “Nah-ah! It’s 8:01. And that means you’re late!” With a sigh I pushed off the wall and made it to the table. Goat-chin wouldn’t dare attack him there with Karin in the vicinity. Nobody's that stupid.  
They all savored the fine curry made only how Yuzu could, delicious. In the beginning he had been the one to cook the meals. And he was decent with basic foods. If it was between him and goat-chin there wouldn’t even be a doubt about which one was better. Yuzu, on the other hand, was on a whole other level. So it wasn’t long till Yuzu took over the kitchen and everyone was better off for it.  
“The food was amazing, thanks.” As always, Yuzu beamed at the compliment and started up a conversation about desserts that lasted for quite a while. So long in fact, that they were interrupted halfway through.  
“Who would do that to a-”  
“Skree!”  
Instantly he and karin were on high alert. It sounded eerily alike to what the girl had killed before him the other night. “Ichigo, what was that-.”  
Her question was cut off by a hole being punched into their wall. Right outside was the masked face of one of those things.   
In the wake of such anger, the fact that nobody had been hit by debris was only an afterthought at the back of his head. That was a small relief in the flooding of negative memory and emotion. He couldn’t face losing another to one to these things.  
Instantly Ichigo was out of his seat and between his family and that monster. “Karin! Get Yuzu and Goat-chin away from that thing!”  
Karin snapped out of her shocked state and immediately started calling out orders. “Goat-chin, get Yuzu and…”  
Ichigo zoned out her orders as he honed in on the monster. Overall human body with contorted knuckles and feet. Small head that was probably the weak point. To bad he wouldn’t be able to reach that high even if he jumped. Oh well, that wasn’t important.  
One thing he’d learned through observation and multiple online games, was how to survive against a single threat that hadn’t singled you out. If you could stay away until some other guy got caught, then you were safe for a short while. He’d be that other guy for his family.  
Without a second's hesitation he sprinted to the kitchen and pulled out the biggest knife he could see. It would probably be impossible to kill the thing. That didn’t matter. The knife at least would give him a sliver of a chance. All he needed was to hold the thing back so his family could get away. Nothing else mattered.  
Running out to the street he faced the towering beast. “Come at me you freaking mother fucker!” He was so scared he was cursing. Not that it mattered. He’d probably be dead in a few short minutes anyway.  
“Buhahaha! Is that really all you puny human have to say? Doesn’t matter… With your energy I’d be satisfied for a while...maybe even a few days...Now die!”  
Faster than he ever could have predicted the monster shot forward. With his current speed he wouldn’t be able to defend, much less, dodge or attack. Meh, maybe he’d given them enough time to get away. If so this wasn’t something to regret, it was something to be proud of.  
With that thought in mind Ichigo closed his eyes. Anytime now he’d feel it… hopefully it would end quickly. He never was one for excruciating pain…  
Scrunch!  
He certainly wasn’t feeling the expected pain. The only difference was that something splashed onto him.  
Snapping his eyes open, Ichigo openly gaped at what he saw. This girl was the one he’d seen yesterday night. Her sword was stuck in the beast's jaw but the beast had his teeth wedged into her torso. It was obvious who had the upper hand. As the beast screamed and disappeared the girl turned to him. “Idiot, what did you think you’d accomplish by-by letting it devour you.”  
Breaking out of his shock, Ichigo scowled. “Well-”   
“Shut up human. As you can tell I am no longer fit to fight him. But I can sense the amount of energy you’re giving off… you may be able to do it.” If she meant beat that thing then she must have hit her head really hard, or was experiencing some weird sort of shock from her bite. He knew his limits. There was no way he could beat something like that. This wasn’t a video game. He was only human.  
“Do you want to live?”  
Ichigo snapped his eyes away from her injury and looked towards her eyes. There was a glint of determination there that showed they still had a chance. God, if she had a way out of this… there wasn’t anything left to lose. “Yes.”  
The girl smiled faintly, obviously too tired to do much else. “Then take my blade and stab it through your heart. It's risky… but if it works you’ll temporarily gain my powers to fight off this hollow.”  
So the only way to win was to risk his life to gain power? Man, he needed to stop playing so many video games. At this rate his life would become one.   
Or maybe it already had. This shit didn’t happen in everyday life. He’d know if everybody else was dealing with these monsters. They weren't.  
“Okay samurai girl, give me that sword.” The girl smiled slightly as the thing reappeared with a guttural roar. “It’s Rukia, Kuchiki Rukia.” Grabbing the sword he gave her a tense smile. “Ichigo Kurosaki.” Before she had time to respond he rammed the blade through his chest and into his heart.  
The first thing he noticed was that there wasn’t any pain. Second was the juggernaut of a sword in his hand. Seeming to softly thrum with pleasant energy that was both foreign and yet felt right in a way that only something you’ve worked with a thousand and one times could. He felt better than he had since her death. Better than being lost inside the games. As though what he used to be was just a shell of who he really was, and he was now whole.   
“Sreee!”  
And the third thing he noticed was the still big but significantly less terrifying monster bearing down on them.  
gripping the blade slightly tighter, Ichigo swung his blade upward in the general direction of the things head. The blade did the rest.  
Out of the tip came a stream of white-hot fire, enveloping the creature and burning it instantly.   
Deed done he turned to Kuchiki, gingerly lifting her unconscious body clad in white. The clothing change was strange but easy to ignore. Right now he should just focus on getting her bandaged up.  
Turning toward the house a spot of orange caught his attention. looking down he almost dropped the Kuchiki. Laying sprawled on the pavement was his body. Kuchiki Rukia better be ready to answer ‘a couple’ questions when she woke up. Because he was going to make her do it whether she wanted to or not. Samurai powers be damned.


	2. First Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ichi's first day as a Shinigami.

Rukia woke up with a groan. She felt like she had spent some time in the eleventh being beaten up by all those barbarians. Everything, especially her torso, ached in a dull throbbing kind of way. Idly she tried to remember why she was in such a sorry state. She had been on a mission in the human world and-   
“About time ya woke up, sleepyhead. You’ve been conked out for going on 14 hours know. If it wasn’t for the huge hole in the wall, I’d seriously be worried about making up some crappy excuse.”  
Once her eyes were fully functional, she threw a look his way that said “So?” better than any words could. How could this boy be so… bratty. It was like he simply didn’t care that she’d saved both him and his family less than a day ago.  
Suddenly a limp doppelganger of the boy was thrust into her face. Behind the body of the glassy eyed copy loomed a glowering demon with fiery orange hair.  
“No deaths? What does this look like to you?!”  
Rukia felt a shiver run down her entire frame as she stared into the eyes of the boy she had sacrificed her powers to.  
Where once there was a warm amber, there now was glowing gold eyes boring into her own. She blamed those black swirls behind the eyes on the sudden surge of angered energy permeating the air. Breathing was significantly harder now and she had to work on getting air.  
She doubted that even the powers he had taken from her, that he would have been able to create something like this. She hurried to start spouting reassurances that he could return to his body while internally making a vow.  
She’d felt this boy's powers before she’d loaned him her own, it wasn’t natural for humans to have that much reiatsu if any at all. She’d have to find out what was different about him.  
That is, If she could convince him to do her Shinigami duties.  
Transferring her shinigami powers to a human, under any circumstances was a capital of offense. To do such would surely lead to imprisonment for multiple years at a minimum. And if the court, the central 46, didn’t feel so kind, she may be imprisoned for centuries.  
There were rumors that had floated around in the early years of her shinigami career. Whispers of inhumane treatment in the prisons of the Sierietie had drifted among the ranks before settling down some time later. She had never really believed such rumors, but now all those whispered conversations came back with a terrifying amount of detail. She didn’t want to go there.  
Forcing herself into a sitting position despite the pain, she turned to face Ichigo. He’d calmed down again and now only watched her with a semi-grumpy expression. With the way their conversation had been going so far, there probably would never be a better time to ask. Best just to get on with it. “Last night I gave you all of my reiatsu. Because of this I need to ask a favor of you.” His eyes narrowed in suspicion but stayed a warm amber. He cocked his head in a grudgingly questioning manner. “Oh?” gathering her thoughts she looked him in the eye with a determined glint. “I need you to send souls to the afterlife and protect people from the hollows as my proxy until my powers have returned.”  
There was a lull in the conversation as Ichigo thought over the request and Rukia anxiously awaited a response. “...I suppose it's like a real world video game...I’ll act as your proxy on one condition.” Rukia held her breath in anticipation. What would this carrot top from hell demand as payment for something as big as this? Money? Or… that. It terrified her as too how much she may have to give to him just to keep her transgression hidden a little longer. She could only pray for something not to… harsh.  
“You teach me how to avoid being killed and answer any question I ask truthfully, and I make time to deal with all the hollows running around.” Her thought flew to all the things he could ask. Without a limit he could basically just-  
Perhaps he’d seen the hesitation in her eyes, for his own became warm and honest as he murmured, “I won’t be asking personal stuff so you don’t have to worry about that.”  
Information and training? That’s all she’d have to do in return? She could think of multiple requests significantly worse than those. “Deal. ” Ichigo smiled brightly before speaking again, “Sweet. Anything you need before I go to school? I won’t be back for a couple hours.”  
After explaining how to read her hollow tracking device and getting some water she fell back to sleep. Her injuries still hurt and it was probably wise to just sleep them off. 

 

Ichigo absently walked to his current class with a note in hand. He’d probably be missing more school than usual so he’d have to sacrifice gaming time for make up studying. It was truly a loss worth grieving over but he would probably be OK. Ever since he’d started to like video games he’d wanted to actually experience the game. This could be his one chance to do that. Sure the cost of losing is his actual death, but he’d deal. You couldn’t get everything you want in a world so cruel as this one.   
He’d just have to take steps towards preventing his demise.  
Obtaining a powerless Shinigami with bucketfuls of vital knowledge was definitely one of those steps.  
Turning into his classroom, he silently greeted the teacher before handing her the note and taking his seat. After school he’d have to at least tell Chad, Tatsuki, and Mizuiro. Especially Chad and Mizuiro. Tatsuki was an old friend but might tell her friend Orihime. Chad spent a lot of time with him and deserved to know what he was getting up to. Not to mention he knew how to keep his mouth shut. His reason for telling Mizuiro was obvious. They were good friends and Mizuiro was a master excuse maker. He’d need the guys help for his time as Rukia’s proxy.  
Telling them could also be considered big steps in finishing this game. They may not be key in keeping him alive, but they were key in making sure his normal life would remain salvageable.   
It was sometime in the middle of class when the hollow tracker started lightly vibrating. Thank god the teacher wasn’t giving out instruction. Quickly excusing himself to the bathroom, he checked the tracker. A hollow was going to appear at a nearby park in twenty minutes. That was where the little boy was.  
Instinctively, Ichigo reached for that feeling that he could only associate with his blade. That comforting energy that he couldn’t help but bask in.   
Swish.  
Once his sword ejected him from his body he immediately began sprinting towards the park at a pace faster than he could ever achieve with his human body. That body was simply too frail.  
It took Ichigo half the time it would take his human body while sprinting. Checking the clock he smirked. He still had six more minutes before the hollow showed it's ugly face. Time to take care of the boy.  
Ichigo strolled over to the sandbox where the boy always stayed. Seeing him burying himself halfway in sand made ichigo smile just slightly. He’d been just like that when he was five. “Oi, kid.” The boy didn’t respond. He had probably been a ghost so long he didn’t even try anymore.Walking up to him, he tapped him on the head.   
Instantly the kid jumped and turned to him with wide eyes. “Oi, kid. Soon a scary monster is going to come here. You need to pass on before it tries to hurt you.”  
The kid was either overly trusting or simply bored of being here. Either way, his response was a chirpy ‘OK’ and a solute. Grinning I lifted my Zanpakuto's hilt first and tapped the kids head. “Good luck kid.”  
Any response from the glowing kid was ignored in favor of zeroing in on a loud screech from not to far away. The hollow had finally made it's entrance. Perfect timing.

 

The hollow earlier had been easier to kill than expected. He didn’t even miss his whole class because of it. Not that something like that actually surprised him.The first level of any game was easy.  
After school had finished up, Ichigo quickly led Chad and Mizuiro to a semi-private location before turning to face them.   
Both had slightly curious expressions as they watched him gather his thought. It’d probably be best if he first explained her death.  
Taking a fortifying breath, Ichigo began. He started with the monster he had seen seconds before being knocked out on that wet and dreary bank. Told of the ghosts he’d seen around since even before her death. Moved on to retailing the moment when he’d first met the Shinigami girl. And he ended the story with and in depth description of last night, along with the deal he had made this morning.  
There was a lull of heavy silence in which Ichigo mentally fidgeted and his friends processed all that they had been told.  
The silence receded as Mizuiro cheekily asked about Rukia Kuchiki, and Chad silently let out a few questions between the many Mizuiro had.   
Soon they headed their separate ways after Ichigo had given them a few demonstrations.   
He had a petite little shinigami to interr- uhm, question.


End file.
